


Future memories

by Khalehla



Category: Football RPF
Genre: Angst, M/M, Mutual Pining, oblivious dorks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-30
Updated: 2017-07-30
Packaged: 2018-12-03 13:50:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,883
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11533551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khalehla/pseuds/Khalehla
Summary: Leon and Christoph make their debut with the senior team, have dinner, and discuss their futures..Expansion of atumblr requestfrom anon. Now with both Christoph and Leon's pov





	Future memories

_**Leon** _

\--

How they manage to get a corner booth, Leon has no idea, but he’s grateful for the relative privacy. When Christoph suggested they go for dinner afterwards, he’d said yes straight away, because he’d take any excuse to spend more time with his best friend.  
  
Best friend. Leon snorts into his beer and ends up choking. Christoph starts patting him on the back.  
  
“I’m. O-kay,” Leon coughs. “I’m okay.”

“You sure?” Christoph gives him a look that’s half concerned and half amused and Leon has to force himself not to blush. If he acted any weirder, his best friend would know something was up and he’d had to explain what made him choke for no reason.

Best friends. A title they’d given each other soon after the first month of playing every game together when he got promoted to the first team. He’d been positioned from side to side then finally settled in the midfield, and through it all, there’d been Christoph. Whether Leon was playing in front of the defensive midfielder or next to him, Christoph had been a solid presence that Leon had learnt to trust implicitly, and it wasn’t long until they started spending time off the pitch as well.

Best friends. For one glorious year they had been closer than most, almost like brothers, and when they’d both moved to their respective clubs, it hadn’t really surprised Leon that he’d started missing Christoph more than even he would a best friend. So much for those “brotherly” feelings, ey?

He’d never told Christoph, of course; everything was still too new and Leon was only starting to really accept his more-than-platonic feelings for Christoph, and he wasn’t sure if he was ready to confess something so incredibly impacting to his best friend. Because even if he wanted so much more, that’s what they were: best friends.

Best friends who’d just debuted with the senior national team together and had an interview together and talked about maybe finishing their final playing careers together. It had been made in jest, but when Christoph mentioned coming out of retirement if Leon moved back to Bochum, Leon had been left almost breathless at the thought. If there was any way to make it happen, for them to be together in their beloved club again, God what Leon wouldn’t do to make it happen.  
  
“Did you ever think, when you told the reporter we’d play together again, that it would be nearly twenty years from now?” Leon asks when he gets his breathing under control. “Can you imagine all the things that could happen between now and then.”

Christoph’s eyes widen and then go soft. “Bundesliga titles. Pokal finals. Maybe even a Champions League medal…”

“For me, maybe,” Leon chuckles. “Not sure about Gladbach’s chances there.”

“Excuse you!” Christoph laughs, “we have just as much chance as Schalke do.”

“We’re going to have to agree to disagree,” Leon says, then adds, “I’d still be super proud of you, though.”

Christoph gives him the fondest smile. “Me too. You deserve a win, you deserve the world.”

Leon’s breath catches again. “So do you,” he says softly.

“Would be nice if we could win it together, though.”

“There’s always the world cup; we just gotta stay good enough to keep getting called up by Jogi.”

“Or whoever succeeds him,” Christoph nods. “Can you imagine? Winning the World Cup?”

“Nothing could be better.”

“Not even the Champions League?”

“We could still win that together,” Leon grins, almost high from the thought that Christoph treasured the idea of them winning trophies together. It’d be like a dream come true for him; sharing something so precious with one of the most important people in his life. “You never know, we could both end up at Bayern one day.”

Christoph rolls his eyes. “Really? You had to say Bayern? I don’t really wanna move south, you know.”

“Never say never; twenty years is a long time and nothing is guaranteed.” Leon pauses. “Except I’d never move to Dortmund because you know, I don’t want to get lynched by the Schalke fans.”

“True,” Christoph smiles. “You think you’d ever leave?”

“I don’t want to say never. I love it, but I’ve only been there for a year, so far. Would you ever leave Gladbach?”

“Not if I could help it,” Christoph shakes his head. “I love it too much here.”

“And you’ve made friends.”

Christoph grin is blinding. “Yeah. Max is awesome.”

The warmth that had been steadily spreading through his body is now like ice in his veins. “Yeah?” Leon asks, trying to sound casual and unaffected and failing badly.

Christoph’s smile dims slightly as he says, “And Marc too. They’re really good friends.”

“That’s nice,” he says unconvincingly.

Christoph gives him a puzzled look. Leon tries to smile and hopes desperately that he doesn’t look as pained as he feels; he stops breathing for the umpteenth time when Christoph reaches out to squeeze his shoulder.

“But you’ll always be my best friend, Leon,” Christoph whispers.

Leon lets out a slow breath and actually manages a sincere smile, even if there’s heartbreak in it. “I like being your best friend,” he replies just as softly. 

He’ll take what he can get.

==

_**Christoph** _

\--

They spend the rest of the night doing this; sometimes reminiscing about that one glorious year in Bochum together, sometimes talking about last season, but mostly talking about the future. The World Cup. Next season. It’s fun, but bittersweet.  
  
He knows none of this is actually real. Christoph has good intentions, of course he does; he has every intention of doing his best to be able to meet up and keep in touch just as they’re agreeing, but even just one season into their separate clubs and it’s already pretty obvious how hard it will be to meet up regularly. It’s not that he doesn’t want to, because hanging out with Leon is still one of his favourite guilty pleasures.

As much as he tells himself that there’s nothing wrong with meeting up for dinner with his best friend, Christoph can’t help feeling guilty sometimes knowing that for him, he always takes more from those dinners than just two former teammates catching up. The last time they’d had lunch - they’d had to change plans at the last minute because Leon had a family dinner he’d forgotten about - Christoph knows he’d hugged Leon just a little bit too hard and little bit too long, and Leon, the sweet, sweet friend that he is, had just hugged him back and acted like there was nothing unusual about Christoph being more clingy than usual.

He hadn’t meant for his comment about coming out of retirement if Leon moved back to Bochum so that they could play together one last time to come out, and he wanted to snatch the words back as soon as he’d said it. He was so afraid that his secret - his heart’s desire - was so glaringly obvious in that unconscious confession, and the last thing he wanted was for Leon to realise that Christoph’s feelings for him weren’t strictly platonic or brotherly, and that the younger man would be uncomfortable enough to distant himself.

A part of him knows that he’s being ridiculous - that at worse, Leon would gently let him down and then nothing would change because Leon was incredible like that - but he’s held his feelings so close to his chest from nearly the two years that it’s so hard not panic at the thought of losing his best friend.

But Leon had thought nothing of it, even bringing it up in a voice filled with wonder. “Did you ever think, when you told the reporter we’d play together again, that it would be nearly twenty years from now? Can you imagine all the things that could happen between now and then.”

Christoph’s eyes widen at the realisation of his confession, but manages to not give himself even more away by saying, “Bundesliga titles. Pokal finals. Maybe even a Champions League medal…”

“For me, maybe,” Leon chuckles. “Not sure about Gladbach’s chances there.”

“Excuse you!” Christoph laughs, “we have just as much chance as Schalke do.”

“We’re going to have to agree to disagree,” Leon says. “I’d still be super proud of you, though.”

The words make something tighten and go warm in Christoph. “Me too. You deserve a win, the world.”

“So do you,” Leon says softly.

“Would be nice if we could win it together though.” Another confession of another dream, another one of his heart’s desires.

“There’s always the World Cup; we just gotta stay good enough to keep getting called up by Jogi.”

“Or whoever succeeds him,” Christoph nods. “Can you imagine? Winning the World Cup?”

“Nothing could be better.”

“Not even the Champions League?”

“We could still win that together,” Leon grins, and Christoph’s heart jumps at just the thought of them winning something so prestigious together. “You never know, we could both end up at Bayern together one day.”

Christoph rolls his eyes, because Leon could be such a(n adorable) little shit sometimes. “Really? You had to say Bayern? I don’t really wanna move south, you know.”

“Never say never; twenty years is a long time and nothing is guaranteed.” Leon pauses. “Except I’d never move to Dortmund because you know, I don’t want to get lynched by the Schalke fans.”

“True,” Christoph smiles. “You think you’d ever leave?”

“I don’t want to say never. I love it, but I’ve only been there for a year, so far. Would you ever leave Gladbach?”

“Not if I could help it,” Christoph shakes his head. “I love it too much here.” He’d never thought he’d find a club that felt so much like home without Leon there, but Gladbach came so close; he wasn’t about to give it up if he had something to say about it.

“And you’ve made good friends.”

Christoph grins at the thought of his teammates. “Yeah. Max is awesome.”

“Yeah?” Leon asks. It’s said casually, but Christoph knows Leon so well, so he knows there’s nothing casual about the question.

Christoph knows he has to say the right thing here, so goes for, “And Marc too. They’re really good friends.”

“That’s nice,” is the neutral response.

Christoph is even more confused, even as Leon gives him a smile that Christoph knows is fake. Why would Leon sound so… _jealous_ , of his friendships with Max and Marc-André? It’s not like Leon didn’t have friends at Schalke. No there must be something else. Now if only his stupid heart would stop getting excited by that thought.

Despite the hope that’s threatening to jump out of his chest, Christoph is still cautious of reading too much into it. He’s spent nearly a year wanting so much more, and he’s half afraid that his poor pining mind is conjuring up a reaction out of Leon that isn’t there.

“But you’ll always be my best friend, Leon,” Christoph says softly, deciding on the simple truth.

When Leon says “I like being your best friend” and actually manages a sincere smile, Christoph feels the relief at knowing he’s said the right thing, even as he feels the heartbreak of hope dying.

Best friends. Of course. But he'll take what he can get.

**Author's Note:**

> I have a [tumblr account ](https://khalehla.tumblr.com) for my writings and random ficlets. If you have a question about this or any of my other stories, come say hi :)
> 
> Disclaimer: I write **fiction** about real people. As far as I know, none of these events ever happened; any resemblance to any actual events are purely coincidental.


End file.
